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MATHURA — On a hat-trick trail, Bharatiya Janata Party MP and cinestar Hema Malini faces an uphill task in Mathura in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
The 75-year-old actor is heavily dependent on the image and work done by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, plus the strong Hindutva wave sweeping the Braj Mandal that comprises districts of Agra, Firozabad, Hathras and Aligarh.
Pitted against Hema Malini are Olympian Vijender Singh from the INDIA bloc and Suresh Singh, an ex-IRS officer from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) which abruptly changed its candidate Kamal Kant Upmanyu.
The huge chunk of Jat votes in the constituency, around five lakh votes has been the chief consideration in the selection of the candidates.
Hema Malini herself claims Jat support as the wife of popular Bollywood star Dharmendra.
Boxer Vijender Singh comes from Bhiwani in Haryana but is keen to represent Mathura. BSP's Suresh Singh after retirement heads an educational institution in Mathura and enjoys a fair image due to his academic and social work.
Hema Malini has been very active in changing the profile of Mathura and Vrindavan, launching several infrastructural projects.
Under her leadership, the Mathura Vrindavan Teerth Vikas Board has undertaken a dozen developmental initiatives.
Hema Malini, a staunch Sri Krishna bhakt, is keen to complete her unfinished agenda, in her term as the MP from Mathura.
But the locals have a long list of grievances, the chief being that she spends more time in Mumbai than in her constituency. Many blame her for being inaccessible and her failure to solve the long-pending local issues like the Yamuna 'shuddhikaran', industrial growth, mobility and crowd management in Vrindavan, Goverdhan and Barsana.
The local BJP leadership is however upbeat, as Jayant Choudhary of the RLD, who was in 2014 defeated by Hema Malini, is now in her support, due to the alliance with the NDA.
It may be recalled that Jayant Choudhary won in 2009 with BJP support but lost in 2014.
"People this time will vote for the party led by Modi and not for individual candidates, so whoever gets the ticket will romp home comfortably," says a senior Mathura journalist Pavan Gautam.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, hit the campaign trail in Mathura on March 27, addressing the local intelligentsia.
He indicated that Mathura will now be the focus of attention and the narrow lanes of Vrindavan deserved change.
Mathura goes to the polls on April 26.